"Ghostin"
Song by Ariana Grande
from the album Thank U, Next
ReleasedFebruary 8, 2019
RecordedOctober 2018
Studio
GenreArt pop
Length4:31
LabelRepublic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Max Martin
  • Ilya

"Ghostin" is a song by American singer Ariana Grande. It is the eighth track on her fifth studio album Thank U, Next, which was released on February 8, 2019. The song was written by Grande, Victoria Monét, Tayla Parx, Savan Kotecha and its producers Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh.

"Ghostin" peaked at number 25 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was a top 40 entry in Australia, Canada, Lithuania, Portugal, and Slovakia.

Background and release

Victoria Monét (pictured in 2017) co-wrote the song.

"Ghostin" was written by Ariana Grande, Victoria Monét, Tayla Parx, Savan Kotecha, and producers Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh, for Grande's fifth studio album Thank U, Next (2019).[1] Grande's vocals were recorded at Jungle City Studios in New York City.[2][3] According to Grande, it was the first song written for the album and took the longest to write: "We had to take [little] breaks from 'Ghostin'. That was the first hook done and then we came back and did the verses like two weeks later... everything else we did in like an hour."[4] She also stated that it was the hardest song to write for the album, particularly the second verse.[5] After completing the song, Grande did not want to release it and begged her manager Scooter Braun to remove it from the album, but he convinced her to keep it.[5]

"Ghostin" was released with the album on February 8, 2019, by Republic Records.[6] Not comfortable enough to perform the song, Grande excluded it from the set list of her Sweetener World Tour.[4]

Composition

Ghostin is an emotional synths and strings pop[7] and art pop[8] ballad. When asked what the song is about in January 2019, Grande responded: "Feeling badly for the person you're with [because] you love somebody else. Feeling badly [because] he can tell he can't compare... and how I should be ghosting him.".[9] The song is thought to be about Grande grieving for her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller, who died from a drug overdose in September 2018, while she was with her then-fiancé Pete Davidson.[10][11] In a February 2019 interview, co-writer Savan Kotecha said: "The song speaks for itself in terms of what it’s about. We were with her for a week in New York witnessing that, witnessing her feelings on that."[12]

Critical reception

The song received unanimous and universal acclaim, with praise directed towards the emotionally honest songwriting, the production and Grande's vocal performance. Michael Cragg of The Guardian called the song an "emotional centrepiece", "gorgeous" and praised Martin's "production that seems to levitate on a pillow-soft blend of eerie backwards synths and big syrupy strings".[13] Billboard's Andrew Unterberger described the song as "the album's barest, most emotional track [...] one that, appropriately, lingers with you well after it's gone."[11]

In 2021, The Guardian ranked the song number five on their list of the 20 greatest Ariana Grande songs,[14] and in 2022, Rolling Stone ranked the song number three on their list of the 50 greatest Ariana Grande songs.[15]

Commercial performance

The song debuted on the February 23, 2019 issue of the Billboard Hot 100 at number 25 in the United States, becoming Grande's 22nd top thirty entry and one of her highest-charting non-singles on the chart to date.[16]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[1]

  • Ariana Grande – lead vocals, songwriting, vocal production
  • Victoria Monét – background vocals, songwriting, vocal production
  • Tayla Parx – songwriting
  • Savan Kotecha – songwriting
  • Max Martin – songwriting, production, vocal production, bass, guitar, keyboards, programming
  • Ilya Salmanzadeh – songwriting, production, vocal production, bass, guitar, keyboards, programming
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing
  • John Hanes – mixing assistant
  • David Bukovinszky – cello
  • Mattias Bylund – strings
  • Mattias Johansson – violin
  • Brendan Morawski – engineering
  • Sam Holland – engineering
  • Cory Bice – engineering assistant
  • Jeremy Lertola – engineering assistant
  • Sean Klein – engineering assistant

Charts

Chart performance for "Ghostin"
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[17] 26
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[18] 27
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[19] 53
France (SNEP)[20] 151
Greece International (IFPI)[21] 23
Hungary (Stream Top 40)[22] 34
Lithuania (AGATA)[23] 27
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[24] 58
Portugal (AFP)[25] 36
Scotland (OCC)[26] 45
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[27] 37
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[28] 68
UK Singles Downloads (OCC)[29] 44
UK Audio Streaming (OCC)[30] 15
US Billboard Hot 100[16] 25

Certifications

Certifications and sales for "Ghostin"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[31] Gold 35,000‡
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[32] Platinum 40,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[33] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. 1 2 "thank u, next / Ariana Grande". Tidal. Archived from the original on April 28, 2019. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  2. ↑ Thank U, Next (CD liner notes). Ariana Grande. Republic Records. 2019.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ↑ Leight, Elias (February 9, 2019). "Some Albums Take Years. Ariana Grande Made 'Thank U, Next' in 2 Weeks". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on July 9, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  4. 1 2 Morin, Alyssa (February 8, 2019). "12 Surprising Secrets From Ariana Grande's Thank U, Next Revealed". E! News. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  5. 1 2 Ariana Grande "thank u, next" Interview, Zach Sang, February 9, 2019, archived from the original on April 20, 2019, retrieved May 19, 2019 – via YouTube
  6. ↑ Butler, Bethonie (February 8, 2019). "'Thank U, Next': Everything to know about Ariana Grande's new album". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 24, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Ariana Grande – 'Thank U, Next' review". NME. February 12, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Every Ariana Grande Song, Ranked: Critic's Picks". Billboard. March 11, 2021.
  9. ↑ Murphy, Desiree (January 24, 2019). "Ariana Grande Drops Hints About Songs on 'Thank U, Next' – Are They About Pete Davidson?". Entertainment Tonight. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  10. ↑ Bonner, Mehera (February 8, 2019). "Everyone Thinks Ariana Grande's New Song "Ghostin'" Is About Mac Miller". Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on April 25, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  11. 1 2 Unterberger, Andrew (February 8, 2019). "'Ghostin' Is the Emotional Peak of Ariana Grande's 'Thank U, Next' (And One of Her Best Songs Ever)". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 22, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  12. ↑ Leight, Elias (February 18, 2019). "How Ariana Grande Scored Two Number One Albums in Just Six Months". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  13. ↑ Cragg, Michael (February 8, 2019). "Ariana Grande: Thank U, Next review – a break-up album of wit and wonder". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  14. ↑ Cragg, Michael (August 5, 2021). "Ariana Grande's greatest songs – ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
  15. ↑ Kaplan, Ilana (May 11, 2022). "The 50 Best Ariana Grande Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
  16. 1 2 "Ariana Grande Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  17. ↑ "ARIA Chart Watch #512". auspOp. February 16, 2019. Archived from the original on April 30, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Ariana Grande Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  19. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 201907 into search. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  20. ↑ "Le Top de la semaine : Top Singles (téléchargement + streaming) – SNEP (Week 7, 2019)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on February 28, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
  21. ↑ "Official IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) – Week: 7/2019". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on February 26, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  22. ↑ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  23. ↑ "Savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. February 15, 2019. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  24. ↑ "Ariana Grande – Ghostin" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  25. ↑ "Ariana Grande – Ghostin". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
  26. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  27. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201907 into search. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  28. ↑ "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 7". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved May 20, 2019.
  29. ↑ "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  30. ↑ "Official Audio Streaming Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  31. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
  32. ↑ "Brazilian single certifications – Ariana Grande – Ghostin" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  33. ↑ "British single certifications – Ariana Grande – Ghostin". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
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